hey there xerox man. losing 120lbs in a year is damn difficult. lifting weights and losing that weight is impossible. so what you're going to want to do is get yourself check w/ calipers for your body fat percentage. they have better tests, but the caliper test is quick, easy, and normally free (your gym should offer it, or a more comprehensive test). all you want is a ballpark figure. from there you can choose your goal accordingly. 20% body fat reduction in a year is possible, but look more in the range of 15%. that should be a good figure to shoot for. from then on you should be on your way to amazing body and great health and shape.
about the gym. start with weights. running before depletes your carb storages so by the time you get to the rack you're pooped and don't have the energy you need to lift those weights. so start w/ the weights. another advantage is that by the time you get to the treadmill you have already used most if not all immediate available supply for energy so your body starts breaking down fat (definately a good thing). this does make your running more difficult, however it also makes it much more worth your while.
when lifting, try and focus on cycling between muscle groups on different days. for example, do chest and triceps on monday, biceps and back on tuesday, rest wednesday (only cardio this day), biceps and triceps on thursday, legs and shoulders on friday (always make sure you stetch after doing legs otherwise you will not be able to walk the next day or two). you will be sore. sore is good. sore is very good. if you're not sore when you're starting off, then you're not working hard enough.
most importantly, watch what goes in your mouth! think of yourself as a high performance vehicle. do you want to put low grade motor oil in a high performance engine?? Heck no! apply the same basic principles to your body. lots of protein! lots of carbs (don't have carbs after 4 if you're focusing on losing weight), not too much fat! (no more than 25% of your diet, 20% should be around optimal). and remember the golden rule...you only lose what you use and burn.
this is what i mean:
John needs 2200 calories a day to sustain himself
he eats 2700 calories a day and burns 400 running for an hour at 7 mi/h
total amount of calories for john: 2700-400= 2300 (100 calories in excess)
although john is exercising, he still eats too much and will continue to gain weight because of his mouth. granted, this is a very simple explanation for complex metabolic processes. but you get the idea you must watch what you eat and watch how much you eat.
remember...just because you're losing weight doesn't mean you have to eat less in quatinty.
1 cantaloupe- about 100 calories
1 chocolate bar- 200+ calories
so make sure you watch how much and what you eat as well!
GL man!
Hope this helps.
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